White-labeling your intranet: The best branding move you’re not making

12 ideas to increase employee engagement

We can boil employee engagement down to two key employee attributes.

Attitude – how an employee feels about the company, their co-workers, their managers, and their role. And behavior – the effort that an employee is willing to invest in their work.

These two attributes have a huge impact on your business.

When an employee has a positive attitude and is willing (on most days) to give their all, they’re more energized and productive. They’re keen to learn and find solutions for workplace problems.

Engaged employees are also more loyal to your organization. Teams with high engagement have turnover rates 18% to 43% lower than those with low engagement. They have lower rates of absenteeism, too.

It’s easy to see how employee engagement can help to build a more effective and efficient organization. You reduce costs linked to recruitment, sick leave, and low productivity. And you get the very best from your workforce.

Understanding the importance of employee engagement is the first step. However, finding ways to improve employee engagement within your organization, is another - And that’s what we’ll be focusing on here.

We’re going to explore a range of employee engagement ideas that you can put into practice at your business to increase engagement. But first, let’s take a look at how employee engagement applies to frontline organizations.

Employee engagement in frontline organizations

Employee engagement is so often focused on those working remote or behind a desk, rather than your frontline employees. Common activities or ideas to increase employee engagement actually actively exclude frontline workers, as well. Think in-office lunches, social happy hours, or team building activities during the standard workday. 

But the truth is frontline employees want to feel engaged in the same way a desk-based team does. They benefit from a sense of belonging and connection. And your business benefits too.

Engaged employees working on the frontline provide a better service for customers or patients. Like their office-based co-workers, they take less time off sick and are less likely to look for another job.

All frontline organizations should be looking to improve employee engagement - and it’s easier than you might think. Below are our top ways to improve employee engagement across your entire organization - applicable to not only desk-based teams, but frontline organizations as well. 

12 ideas to improve employee engagement quickly

Employee engagement goes way beyond team building activities and the standard annual employee review. The most engaged organizations weave employee engagement activities into the fabric of their workplace.

Our tips to improve employee engagement:

1. Embrace technology
2. Promote two-way communication
3. Recognize and reward
4. Offer growth opportunities
5. Foster work-life balance
6. Gather feedback from employees
7. Set clear expectations
8. Give regular feedback
9. Promote team collaboration
10. Celebrate milestones
11. Lead by example
12. Measure and act on feedback

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1. Embrace technology

Today’s tech is intrinsically engaging, to the extent that people spend an average of 4.8 hours a day on mobile apps. That’s a third of their waking hours.

People leaders can take advantage of this fact by embracing mobile tools to increase employee engagement. Of course, embracing a clunky old intranet is going to do more harm than good. It won’t offer the user experience that employees now expect from their tech. But with cutting-edge software and apps, leaders make the cornerstones of engagement – communication, collaboration, and recognition – more appealing and accessible to employees.

For frontline organizations, this can revolutionize the way you work.

Employees no longer need a desktop or company email to access internal comms. With an employee engagement app like Blink, they can simply use the smartphone in their pocket, meaning everyone stays connected.

Teams can access chat functions, recognition features, and company tools and resources – all from the same interface.

Leaders can make the most of employee engagement surveys and analytics features. They can use data to understand employee engagement like never before, finding more effective ways to improve it.

When you put the very best tech tools at the heart of your employee engagement strategy, you connect your frontline to co-workers and management. You also make measuring and improving engagement a whole lot easier.   

2. Promote two-way communication

Good communication is the key to employee engagement. It’s a way to share information and company values and to include every member of your organization in company culture. But 80% of professionals rate their organization’s communication as poor or average.

If your company comms aren’t hitting the mark, it may be because communication only moves top-down. Your leadership team speaks and everyone else listens.

You’re much more likely to motivate employees when you create channels for two-way communication. (Like they did at Domino’s). When you give them a voice, encourage them to speak up, and listen to what they have to say, employees are much more engaged.

In fact, employees who say their voice is heard at work are 4.6x more likely to give their all.

Creating two-way communication is harder in large, hybrid, and frontline organizations. How do you connect co-workers, managers, and leadership when they don’t physically cross paths? And what do you do when frontline employees don’t have a company email account?

Again, it comes down to having the right tech tools. You need communication channels that are easy to access – from the office, at home, on the shop floor, and on the road. So everyone stays connected and updated wherever they’re working.

3. Recognize and reward

When employees feel that hard work goes unnoticed, there’s less incentive for them to bring their A-game. So if you’re looking to improve your employee engagement strategy, recognition and rewards are another key focus area.

Some organizations go all out with a points and rewards system. Employees earn points for good work and can then spend points to get gift cards, company merchandise, or even make a charitable donation.

But there are lots of other ways to show your appreciation for employees. An employee of the month program or a simple thank you goes a long way. And – as we’ll see in a moment – rewarding high performers with training and career progression opportunities may prove more meaningful than small monetary prizes.   

However you approach recognition and reward, the key is finding a strategy that works for all employees. 

Perhaps a frontline employee stays late to get a job done. Or receives positive feedback from a customer. These employees should enjoy the same level of manager and peer-to-peer recognition as their office-based co-workers.

With Blink’s recognition tool, it’s easy to create a culture of appreciation. Anyone can send personalized messages of appreciation, sharing posts with individuals, teams, or the whole organization. 

4. Offer growth opportunities

Employees who have a clear career path are more likely to stay working with your company. They’re also more engaged and productive in their work.

But too often, the focus is on the professional development of management and office-based employees. According to McKinsey research, many employers underestimate the value that frontline workers place on learning and career advancement opportunities.

Of the 2,100 frontline employees McKinsey surveyed, 70% said they had applied for a promotion or a job with more responsibility. But only 25% of those who applied were successful. And 65% said they were unsure how to achieve advancement.

As well as highlighting the lack of growth for frontline employees, McKinsey made several recommendations:

• Share professional development, mentorship, and promotion opportunities with every team member
• Give managers the training they need to help employees establish career growth goals – and support them to achieve them. 
• Where a promotion isn’t possible, consider a lateral move or the assignment of new challenges within an employee’s current role to satisfy their hunger for growth

Ultimately, when employees are given the support they need to thrive in their careers, it’s a win-win. An organization retains employees and improves performance. Employees get to enjoy the challenge and satisfaction of expanding their talents.

5. Foster work-life balance

Achieving work-life balance as a frontline worker isn’t always easy. Shifts tend to be long and unpredictable. And when employees are supporting customers or patients, it can be hard to even take scheduled breaks.

This has long been accepted as “the way things are”. But with a third of workers saying that work-life balance is a top priority when looking for jobs, frontline organizations looking to increase employee engagement have a real opportunity – to outshine other employers and better support their staff.

You could offer predictable shifts and – where that isn’t possible – communicate shifts in advance. Consider flexible working and fair overtime policies. Encourage employees to get enough downtime by addressing an always-on culture.

Another key consideration? We know that 70% of frontline employees have suffered from burnout or felt at risk of burnout. This is something that the Starbucks team has taken on board.

Starbucks employees get access to a mental health care platform and free therapy sessions. They also get 10 days of backup care for the children or adults they care for, helping them balance the competing responsibilities of work and caregiving with less stress.

By helping employees to plan and enjoy their time away from work, organizations can count on improved productivity and engagement each time workers arrive for a shift.

6. Gather feedback from employees

Frontline employees are your eyes and ears on the ground. They can provide valuable perspective on what is and isn’t working operationally and how you can improve the customer experience.

But if your organization – like many frontline firms – is suffering from a frontline connection gap, you struggle to access that insight. More often than not, frontline employees don’t have the access they need to provide this valuable feedback.

This means you miss out on all kinds of frontline employee feedback – including their thoughts on employee engagement. You find it much harder to identify and address engagement issues before they affect morale and retention.

The first step to fixing this issue is developing feedback channels for all employees. Tech tools can help. An app like Blink allows you to send a feedback request to a frontline worker’s smartphone, meaning they’re much more likely to see it and respond. 

Remember that different employees prefer different feedback methods so open up a variety of options.

Make pulse surveys, annual employee engagement surveys, and manager one-on-ones part of your feedback request schedule. And give employees the option to leave feedback anonymously so they feel comfortable being completely honest.

With up-to-date employee feedback, you can make your employee engagement strategy more relevant and effective. You get to the heart of how employees feel – and discover the areas where change is most needed.

7. Set clear expectations

Uncertainty and employee engagement don’t mix. Role ambiguity creates stress and it’s one of the leading causes of employee burnout.

Employees need to understand exactly what’s expected of them. They need to know what work to do, how to do it, and who to do it with. Even when a frontline role involves a lot of autonomy, employees need guidance on their remit to feel confident and motivated.

Managers are responsible for setting clear expectations. And it all comes down to good communication.

Frontline managers should clearly define the role and its responsibilities for new hires. They need to set key performance indicators (KPIs) so employees know what success looks like. And they need to give clear instructions when assigning new tasks.

Employees also need to know how their role fits into the bigger picture. How do their tasks relate to overarching company values and goals?

By giving employees clarity you improve employee engagement. But you also promote accountability and show employees that their work is valuable.

8. Give regular feedback

Picture an employee – let’s call him Jim – who hasn’t had any manager feedback in a while.

Jim keeps running into the same customer service problem. But he doesn’t feel comfortable approaching his manager about it. And he’s not due a one-to-one for months.

So Jim keeps at it, doubting that he’s doing a good enough job but unsure what to do about it. Without regular manager input Jim feels less confident in his abilities. His job satisfaction inevitably takes a hit.

Now let’s picture a different scene.

Jim’s manager – let’s call her Jane – understands how important feedback is to employee engagement. She sets up regular, informal one-to-ones, where both she and Jim can raise any issues.

Jim gets to hear that he’s doing a great job. And gets useful, actionable advice on what he could do better. He gets recognition where it’s due and a regular reminder of role expectations.

Feedback needs to move in both directions. And it’s as relevant to your longest-serving staff as it is to new hires. Feedback boosts the confidence of employees and increases their job satisfaction, which means better employee engagement.

Employees also stand to benefit most when feedback is constructive. This means managers focus on facts, not opinions. They talk about the actions of an employee, not their personality traits.

They also approach feedback as a two-way conversation, where employees get a chance to share their thoughts within an open and supportive environment.

9. Promote team collaboration

Two heads are always better than one. And employees who work well together are happier, more productive, and less stressed. Team collaboration can help to prevent loneliness, too.  

Glassdoor research shows that 60% of employees with less than five years of work experience feel lonely all or most of the time. But 89% of all workers say that a sense of belonging within their company is essential for workplace happiness.

Bringing teams together, including frontline employees who tend to work alone, is therefore crucial to employee engagement. And it starts with company culture.

You need a psychologically safe environment where everyone feels comfortable contributing their thoughts and ideas. Like a calendar of team building activities. Special consideration for new hires and team members who work in isolation. And praise for team successes as well as individual wins.

The right communication and collaboration tools are another important part of the puzzle. Project management software helps people to collaborate when they’re not working in the same location. And chat tools allow workers to share problems, ideas, and solutions with ease.

Elara Caring is one of the largest care providers in the US, with around 32,000 carers working on their frontline. The company found it hard to connect its carers and was experiencing a collaboration problem.

By making Blink their communication hub, they improved team collaboration dramatically. Now 95% of employees say they feel more connected to the organization and their co-workers.

10. Celebrate milestones

Mavis Mills, an ASDA supermarket employee, recently celebrated her 80^th birthday. And the whole team celebrated with her. They decorated her checkout with banners and balloons and gave her gifts, flowers, and a cake.

Celebrations like these bring teams together. They boost employee engagement for the person being celebrated and inspire other employees, too.

You can celebrate birthdays, work anniversaries, passing probation, or the successful conclusion of a company project. Anything that fits with your company values and culture.

Of course, it’s easier to plan a celebration for on-site teams. You can organize a gathering in the office or – as ASDA did – around the checkout where Mavis was working.

But that doesn’t mean hybrid and dispersed frontline teams have to forgo celebrations. You can still improve employee engagement by celebrating milestones via internal communication tools.

For example, with the Blink Feed, you can share meaningful milestones with a team or the whole organization – and encourage employees to join in the celebration. You can celebrate little and often to show appreciation for employees on a regular, informal basis.

11. Lead by example

The leaders of today do things differently. Good leaders understand that transparency, fairness, and emotional intelligence help to improve employee engagement.

Unlike workplace leaders of the past, they know that when everyone, at all levels of a company, sticks to the same rules and values people feel more invested in a company’s success.

As a leader, this means practicing what you preach.

You should demonstrate the same commitment to two-way communication, collaboration, and recognition that you want to see in employees. You should model work-life balance so workers find it easier to follow suit.

By living and breathing company values and culture, you inspire trust and respect in your workforce. And when you join them in using the same communication and employee engagement tools, you make it much more likely that people will follow your lead. 

12. Measure and act on feedback

Gathering feedback is an essential part of any employee engagement strategy. But simply getting employees to leave feedback isn’t enough. You have to measure and act upon employee feedback, too.

Research shows that people who say their employer takes meaningful action based on their feedback are 37% less likely to look for another job. And they’re also much more likely to take part in future surveys.

So mine employee feedback for data. Then create employee engagement KPIs so you can measure progress. You can base targets around metrics like:

• Absenteeism rate
• Employee retention rate
• Employee net promoter score (eNPS)

It then all comes down to good internal communication. Share your feedback findings and engagement progress with employees. It shows that you take their views seriously and are committed to making improvements.

Employee engagement: the next step

In thriving organizations, the drive to improve employee engagement is more than just an HR team initiative. It’s something that the whole organization embraces as part of its ethos.

Communication, feedback, and recognition become part of everyone’s every day. And the organization benefits from better staff retention, productivity, and satisfaction.

Your organization may not be at this point yet. But wherever you are in your employee engagement journey, the 12 ideas listed above will help you move forward. Weave these activities into your employee engagement strategy and you’ll encourage the employee attitudes and behaviors you want to see.

When it comes to frontline organizations, the right tech tools are a priority because they make employee engagement so much easier. They provide the vital line of connection between every member of your workforce, from new hires to stalwart staff, and frontline workers to your office-based team.

Blink’s mobile-first super-app helps every frontline employee to feel valued and heard. And with a news feed, secure chat, recognition features, surveys, analytics, and more, you have everything you need to transform internal communication and employee engagement for the better.

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Is your employee intranet actually working for your team — or is it just taking up space?

Today’s workforce is mobile, distributed, and digitally savvy. They manage their finances, shopping, and social lives through beautifully designed apps — and they expect workplace tools to keep pace.

When an intranet doesn’t, employees steer clear. That’s why clunky, desktop-first platforms are quietly being replaced by modern intranets and employee apps designed for how people actually work in 2026 — not how they used to.

Simply put: Most intranets don’t fail because they’re missing features. They fail because no one actually wants to use them.

A modern intranet needs to be more than a static homepage or a document dumping ground. It’s a living, breathing hub that helps employees do their best work.

It connects people, information, and tools — all in one place. And crucially? It’s designed around how employees actually work now, not how they used to.

So what separates a truly modern intranet from versions that have come before? Meet the eight features you’ll find on any cutting-edge intranet platform.

8 must-have modern intranet features

Whether you’re planning to update an outdated intranet or find a completely new solution, here are the must-have intranet features you need — and why they matter.

1. A mobile-first experience

Let’s start with a non-negotiable. A modern intranet should be mobile-first.

It should be designed for mobile devices as a priority, not retrofitted later as part of a clumsy glow-up. Because shrinking a desktop intranet down to fit a teensy smartphone screen just doesn’t cut it for user experience.

A modern intranet app features:

• Full functionality — not a slimmed-down version of your desktop platform
• Intuitive navigation via a user-friendly dashboard
• Easy access, even for employees without a corporate email address
• A consistent experience across both mobile and desktop

What makes this a modern intranet must-have?

Work doesn’t just happen at a desk. Employees are on shop floors, hospital wards, construction sites, and warehouses. Even desk-based employees are increasingly hybrid, remote, or on the move.

If your company intranet only works well on desktop, you’re excluding a huge chunk of your workforce.

A mobile-first intranet app closes communication gaps, puts resources within easy reach, and creates an equitable digital employee experience for everyone. So it’s easy to check policy updates, swap shifts, and even submit a safety report — all via smartphone and all in the flow of work.

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2. A central hub for information

One of the central promises of any intranet is simple: a single source of truth. That means:

• Policies, handbooks, and standard operating procedures all living in one place
• A clear structure and ownership for every piece of content
• Content management tools — so it’s easy for admins to see what needs updating when

What makes this a modern intranet must-have?

Many organizations still have information scattered across Microsoft 365 SharePoint sites, email attachments, shared drives, and unofficial WhatsApp chats.

Employees aren’t sure where to look for resources or, when they do lay their hands on the right document, whether the information it contains is up to date.

A central hub makes information reliable and easy to find. Employees spend less time digging around for documents and resources, so productivity and collaboration improve.

3. Powerful search and discovery

Even the best content is useless if no one can find it. So modern intranets treat search functions as a core feature, not an afterthought.

They provide a fast, intuitive experience — with filters, tags, and clear navigation. They surface the right content, not just the most recent.

What makes this a modern intranet must-have?

Advanced search functionality saves time, reduces queries to managers, and helps employees find the answers they need in seconds. This is particularly useful for busy frontline teams who don’t have time to hunt for the information they need.

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4. Built-in communication tools

A modern intranet mobile app goes beyond storage. It acts as a communication hub, bringing together knowledge, company news, and collaboration tools.

We’re talking:

• A social-media-style news feed for company updates and culture building
• Chat tools for quick team messaging
• Live streams and video conferencing for real-time social collaboration
• Employee surveys and polls to give everyone a voice

Employees get two-way communication channels, easy access to workplace updates, and a cohesive intranet experience.  

What makes this a modern intranet must-have?

With fewer tools and tabs, it’s easy for employees to get up to speed. People are also more likely to act on your comms — they can click on a link within a message and head straight to the intranet resources it relates to.

With built-in tools, employee communication becomes more streamlined, effective, and engaging. And your intranet becomes the go-to place for company comms.

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5. Easy access to other systems

Are there barriers between your intranet and the other digital workplace systems you use? Then you’re adding friction to the work day — and missing out on another essential modern intranet feature.

The best intranets act as a digital front door for your organization. From one simple dashboard and a single set of login details, employees can access all the tools they need to do their work well. No juggling passwords or hopping between tabs.

They can check a payslip in the HR system, complete an online training module, view inventory information — all in a couple of clicks, right from your intranet platform.  

What makes this a modern intranet must-have?

When your intranet acts as a digital hub, providing single sign-on and deep integrations with your existing systems, work flows more smoothly. Employees spend less time navigating tools and more time actually using them.

The payoff is less frustration, fewer support requests, and higher adoption of the software you’ve already invested in.

6. Social and engagement features

Work isn’t just about tasks and to-do lists. It’s about people — and your intranet should reflect that. It needs social features that feel natural and intuitive.

A news feed where employees can react, comment, and start new conversations. Quick-fire polls. Communities of coworkers. Short-form video stories. Public recognition that makes great work visible.

This modern social experience mimics the apps employees love to use away from work. And — done well — it doesn’t add to the noise. With smart targeting and personalization, employees see relevant, engaging content every time they log in.  

What makes this a modern intranet must-have?

Employees want to feel seen, heard, and connected. Social and engagement features give them a shared space to interact — a digital water cooler where people can gather, no matter their location, shift, or time zone.

This is great for building company culture and improving employee engagement. It’s particularly useful for dispersed teams who don’t always get to see their coworkers face to face.

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7. Simple administration and governance

Modern should never mean hard to manage. Behind every great intranet experience is a setup that’s easy to run — without constant IT involvement. That means:

• Simple publishing workflows
• Clear permissions and controls
• Easy audience targeting
• Straightforward governance for content creation

What makes this a modern intranet must-have?

When administration is too complex, content delivery slows down. Pages go stale. Updates get stuck in approval loops. Before long, people stop trusting the intranet. And once you’ve lost that trust, it’s very hard to get employees back onto the platform.

The best intranet sites give comms, HR, and operations teams the confidence to manage their piece of the intranet independently. That agility keeps information fresh, accurate, and timely.

8. Analytics that show what’s working

Last on our list of must-have modern intranet features it’s analytics. Because it’s no longer enough to publish content and hope for the best. Internal teams need data that helps them understand:

• Who’s logging in?
• What content is being read?
• Where engagement is high (or low)
• How adoption changes over time

The best employee intranets provide clear, actionable insights. They present data clearly and allow you to drill down into that data to reveal trends and causes.

What makes this a modern intranet must-have?

Employee expectations and needs are liable to change. So, to keep pace, you need to understand the intranet experience inside out.

With access to usage, reach, and engagement data, you can continuously improve your intranet. You can make it more relevant, more engaging, and more valuable over time. So employees consistently get value from the platform and actually enjoy logging in each day.

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Making work easy and enjoyable with a modern intranet app

When all the right pieces come together, your intranet becomes an employee magnet. It also makes work a whole lot easier.

Employees don’t waste time hunting for answers or switching between tools. People communicate and work together easily. Culture shows up in everyday moments — not just leadership announcements.

That’s the difference between an intranet people avoid and one they rely on. Between a platform you’re simply paying for and one that actually gets used.

If your intranet still feels like a filing cabinet — or if it’s missing any of the modern intranet features we’ve covered above — it’s time for an upgrade. 

FirstUp has helped many organizations modernize internal communications. But for teams seeking more flexibility, frontline access, or a better employee experience, it may not be the perfect fit. Whether you're frustrated by limited integrations, a lack of mobile-first functionality, or underwhelming adoption, you're not alone in searching for smarter alternatives.

In this guide, we’ve rounded up the top 12 alternatives to FirstUp in 2025 — starting with Blink. These tools offer innovative ways to connect your workforce, enhance engagement, and streamline operations. From robust employee apps to modern intranets, you’ll find the right solution for your team’s size, industry, and needs.

What to look for in a Firstup alternative

Not all internal communications platforms are created equal — and the right fit depends on your workforce, goals, and challenges. If you’re considering a switch from FirstUp, here are the key features and capabilities to prioritize:

#1. Mobile-first design

Your platform should meet employees where they are — especially if they’re on the frontline or rarely at a desk. A true mobile-first experience ensures every worker can engage with critical updates, resources, and conversations in real time.

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#2. Targeted, personalized comms

Look for tools that go beyond blast messages. You’ll want to deliver relevant content to the right people at the right time — whether by role, location, or shift — to drive real engagement and cut through the noise.

#3. All-in-one functionality

Switching between apps for chat, tasks, surveys, and documents leads to confusion and lower adoption. Platforms that unify communication, content, and workflows in one place help your employees stay connected and productive.

#4. High adoption rates

It’s not just about features — it’s about usage. Look for vendors that prove high adoption and engagement across all employee types, including those without email addresses or corporate devices.

#5. Easy integration

Your internal comms platform should play nicely with the tools you already use — from HRIS systems to scheduling platforms, document storage, and SSO providers.

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#6. Analytics & feedback

You can’t improve what you don’t measure. The best alternatives to Firstup offer real-time analytics, sentiment insights, and feedback loops to help you understand what’s working — and what’s not.

Top 12 Firstup alternatives in 2025

#1. Blink

Best for: Mid to large enterprises looking for real adoption.

Blink simplifies internal communication by turning fragmented tools into one seamless platform. With integrated chat, company news, surveys, and more, Blink boosts engagement and ensures every employee stays connected — without the complexity. It is designed to adapt to a wide range of industries and team structures.

Why teams switch to Blink:

• No email needed for access — ideal for any employee
• Combines communication, engagement, and workflows in one app
• Rapid implementation and proven high adoption
• Integrated analytics, automation, and feedback loops
  

Used by McDonald’s, Domino’s, JD Sports, Shake Shack, Stagecoach, and more.

Gartner Rating: 4.8 out of 5 

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#2. Workvivo – Best for culture-first comms

Workvivo brings a social networking layer to internal communication, helping employees engage with each other and company updates. Its features include live feeds, recognition posts, and integration with enterprise tools. It suits organizations looking to make culture a visible part of daily work.

Gartner Rating: 4.7 out of 5 (55 reviews)

Pricing available upon request

#3. Staffbase – Best for enterprise comms complexity

Popular for its intranet and mobile app, Staffbase helps companies streamline internal communication and align employees with company news and leadership updates. It is designed to adapt to a wide range of industries and team structures. Compared to FirstUp, it provides strong targeting and content management but may require heavier admin involvement and longer setup times.

Gartner Rating: 4.6 out of 5

Pricing available upon request

#4. Haiilo – Best for content planning & publishing

Haiilo (formerly COYO) offers an impressive suite of tools for comms professionals who prioritize content workflows and analytics. It’s a solid option for campaign planning, though its user experience may feel more CMS-like than employee-first.

Gartner Rating: 4.1 out of 5

Pricing available upon request

#5. Simpplr – Best for intranet-focused organizations

Simpplr brings a modern take to the traditional intranet. Compared to FirstUp’s campaign-centric model, Simpplr provides cleaner navigation, better search, and tailored experiences for desk-based teams — but lacks some engagement features.

Gartner Rating: 4.6 out of 5

Pricing available upon request

#6. Beekeeper – Best for operational messaging

Beekeeper is designed for frontline teams and focuses on messaging, shifts, and operations. While it’s mobile-friendly like FirstUp, it leans more toward productivity tools than holistic engagement or content delivery.

Gartner Rating: 4.6 out of 5

Pricing available upon request

#7. Unily – Best for full-scale intranet deployments

Unily is an enterprise-grade digital workplace solution with deep customization and strong knowledge management features. While powerful, it may be more complex than necessary for companies focused solely on internal communications.

Gartner Rating: 4.3 out of 5 (10 reviews)

Pricing available upon request

#8. Nudge – Best for microlearning & task nudges

Nudge isn’t a direct FirstUp replacement but offers a focused solution for frontline enablement. It’s built for delivering bite-sized training, checklists, and nudges — not full-scale comms or engagement strategies.

Gartner Rating: 4.5 out of 5 

Pricing available upon request

#9. Jostle – Best for small teams getting started

Jostle is a straightforward internal comms platform with a clean interface and ease of use. It’s suitable for smaller companies but lacks the targeting, integrations, and scalability of more enterprise-ready platforms like FirstUp.

Gartner Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Pricing available upon request

#10. Zoho Connect – Best for Zoho-centric teams

Part of the Zoho suite, Zoho Connect works well for companies already using Zoho tools. However, it lacks the strategic targeting and campaign flexibility of Firstup, making it better suited for basic collaboration.

Gartner Rating: 4.2 out of 5

Pricing available upon request

#11. MangoApps – Best for flexibility & custom use cases

MangoApps blends messaging, documents, and intranet tools into a unified experience. It offers flexibility, but may require more effort to configure effectively compared to FirstUp’s out-of-the-box campaigns.

Gartner Rating: 4.4 out of 5

Pricing available upon request

#12. Axero – Best for knowledge management

Axero is built around content discovery, document libraries, and compliance. While it offers solid internal search and knowledge sharing, it’s less dynamic than Firstup for ongoing employee engagement or communications.

Gartner Rating: 4.3 out of 5

Pricing available upon request

Final thoughts: Choose what’s best for your workforce

Choosing an internal communications tool isn’t just about features — it’s about fit. FirstUp may work for some, but if you're looking for faster implementation, deeper engagement, or better mobile access, one of these 12 platforms might be a better match. Blink leads the way for companies who need one powerful platform to connect everyone — from the boardroom to the break room.

David Brown is a titan of the public transport industry. His star-studded career has taken him from a graduate with London Transport to CEO of Go-Ahead Group. He's been GM for CentreWest London Buses, Operations and Managing Director for London General and London Central.

#1. Always grasp opportunity.

The advice I give to graduates, young bus managers or other leadership groups is this: grasp opportunity whenever you can. Don't let them pass you by, because they won't come back again.

#2. Bring more young people in.

Privatization was a death knell for a lot of graduate schemes. It was an easy way to save money, to look at the bottom line. But we ended up with a generational hole of senior managers coming through.

One of the first things I did at Go-Ahead was reintroduce a graduate scheme. I'm very excited to see that cadre of talent come through.

#3. And promote them fast!

Now I want to help that young talent leap from junior management to senior or directorship roles. To bridge that generation gap, their career needs to accelerate.

We have a 93% retention rate. That's partly because people see a trajectory to the top of the organization. You need to give people real responsibility and accountability. It's a fantastic time to be in the transport industry as a young person. Because if you're good, there are infinite chances for you to stand out.

#4. (But don't force them to stay).

I'm relaxed about people leaving – because I know they'll come back. But they'll come back with another set of skills and experiences to help us. We need these people as part of transport. I'm passionate about that whole industry, not only the Go-Ahead version.

#5. Real progress happens when there's no time to plan.

I never worked harder than in lockdown. It was 24/7. We were trying to reconstruct our business. We needed lots of local leadership. So from day 1, nobody blinked. We just got on with it.

Desk-based and frontline stepped up massively. The frontline were in some scary situations in their day-to-day, and I'll always be proud of how they coped.

#6. Learn from your mistakes — even in a crisis.

After the first lockdown, we reviewed our actions and said, "What do we do well, and what could we do better?” Because that's what you should do, of course. But when there's a second wave, we also must be ready to remember what we instinctively did well.

The downside has been the public message about our business, that it's unsafe to travel by public transport, and demonizing public transport. That is a real big hurdle that we've got to overcome.

#7. There's a place for greater formal collaboration in transport today.

All the bus PRC companies have grown up in a siloed era: never collaborating, out of fear of the Competition Act, and the CMA.

Now the operators do talk to each other, but only in the context of the CPT, which is our trade body. We've got a huge amount in common, and we need to leverage that better.

We're going to have to be far more agile, far more responsive to an ever-changing situation. That feeds into our engagement with our colleagues’ representatives from the trade union. It's been more collaborative because we've realized it goes beyond the small issues or the legal aspects.

#8. Let's lose the bureaucracy.

When we went into lockdown, people said “Well, we've got to tell the traffic commissioner, we’ve got to check”. I said, “You just go do the right thing, and they're going to have to catch up with us. We’re going to have to do the right thing, and plead forgiveness afterwards.” Because we haven't got the time to wait 270 days to make decisions.

The industry needs more of that, not less of that. We need to be more flexible, more agile and more collaborative going forward.

#9. Technology will help us re-position ourselves.

Technology can automate a lot of aspects to make public transport jobs easier. That leaves the drivers extra time to do the bits we want more of, which is looking after customers. It's important to push that going forward, so passengers feel looked after as well as safe.

Technology will also help us stay relevant around the issues of air quality and climate change. I'm excited to see how that develops.

#10. The UK government must step in – before it’s too late.

At the beginning of this year, I saw a new dawn for public transport. I could see we were going to get good, generous funding from the government. We were helping the government see how transport fits into every single department – not just its own.

Now, we have to pick all that back up. We need the government to spend as much money as they did telling people to travel, as they did telling them not to. A sort of 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme on trains and buses. That level of commitment is imperative.

And if they don't? We'll be left with hollowed out cities. And no one wants that.

What makes him awesome?

Andy has such a positive attitude to his work. I can load him up with work as we are a very busy site and he comes back for more. He will always look to help the prisoners with fixes to their cell power as he is aware that's all they have. He assists all trades and gives great advice to the electrical supervisor. We're happy for the chance to recognize his hard work and valuable contribution. 

How has Blink helped in his role?

By sharing information which can help ours and other sites- for example cell call plates that cannot be smashed, and lights from another manufacturer. The sharing of this type of information is great for the company.

What does he want to do next?

Andy has conscientiously trained himself on the Test and Inspection course, meaning he will be able to assist the company with extra work on testing.

Nominated by: Simon Kemp, Deputy Site Manager

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Effective communication is the glue that holds all your employees together. It unites everyone, from the top management to the frontline and remote workers, towards a shared set of organizational goals and values.

Yet a recent study paints a grave picture of most working environments. 80% of professionals rate their business’ communication as poor or average.

And when kept unchecked, ineffective communication often leads to a snowball effect of disengagement and confusion. 

It doesn’t have to be this way. Implementing effective organizational communication strategies is the key to unlocking smooth coordination among your employees. And in this post, we’ll take a look at what those strategies are.

Why organizational communication is important

In a recent report called "Internal Communication in the Eyes of C-Suite Leaders", it was found that C-suite executives recognized the vital role internal communication plays in improving their bottom lines and driving business results. And rightly so.

Workers need to interact and exchange information and documents with one another frequently. Plus, they want the top management to listen to their concerns, suggestions, and feedback.

The same goes for senior leaders in the company. They want to make sure that internal marketing campaigns, critical company announcements, news about employee benefits, and other important messages are reaching each and every member of the workforce.

By fulfilling these needs for both parties, a good corporate communication strategy solidifies the bond among the workers and facilitates the sharing of information. The result? A big boost in employee engagement and productivity.

Now the question is, how can you level up your company’s communication? By following the most effective organizational communication strategies.

Organizational communication strategies in the workplace

Without further ado, here are our best organizational communication strategies to help resolve workplace conflicts and facilitate a smooth exchange of information across your company.

1. Create a corporate communication plan

Failing to plan is planning to fail. If you don’t have an internal communication plan in place, drop everything else and build one first. Without a plan, you won’t have a clear roadmap to implement effective communication in your business.

A great communication strategy will help you answer vital questions like:

• How to make your messages more relevant and engaging?
• Which communications channels should you be using?
• How can you ensure the right content reaches the workers at the right time?
• What roles will your C-level executives play in workplace communication?
• How will you encourage employees to engage in two-way conversations?

The planning process starts with having a clear understanding of your communication goals and audience. And then conducting an audit of the current communication campaigns and channels you have in place.

This is followed by determining your communication schedule and channels for the next six or 12 months. To learn more, check out our in-depth guide on building an internal communication strategy.

2. Encourage one-to-one conversations

Not every concern can be appropriately discussed in a group setting. For example, you may want to address a personal grievance or performance issue. And in such cases, it’s much better to initiate a private chat.

A one-on-one meeting gives you the chance to read the worker’s body language, know their communication style, and get visual cues on how to proceed with the interaction.

Even when you don’t have a specific issue to discuss, setting aside one-to-one time with your employees on a regular basis is essential. Because it helps you understand and bond with them more effectively. So make sure to add this company communication strategy to your arsenal.

3. Sprinkle a little humor

Workplace communication is usually a serious endeavor. You often convey information that’s intense. Whether you’re discussing a problem or setting goals, laughing and cracking jokes may seem out of place.

But a series of serious interactions can put workers in a negative mindset. And it affects how they interpret and draw conclusions from the information shared with them. When a meeting gets too heated, people want to leave as soon as possible, which hinders the flow of information. 

Although it’s not always possible to avoid a stressful conversation, levity can help you a lot in pushing your company’s communication strategy forward. Lightening the mood is an important skill that helps you defuse tense situations and relax everyone involved in the communication.

So the next time you’re communicating something to your employees, try to make them laugh.

Also, if you’re worried that your jokes won’t be any good, then you’re focusing on the wrong thing. It’s not so much about making clever remarks as about trying to make people feel relaxed and comfortable. In fact, research shows that people welcome any kind of levity as long as it’s not offensive or hurtful.

4. Nurture two-way communication

Effective communication is supposed to be a two-way street. An organization cannot reach its full collaboration potential if information flows only in one direction — from top management to the rest of the workers.

If employees can’t ask questions or discuss the information conveyed, then you aren’t communicating. You’re commanding. You’re giving orders and expecting workers to follow them.  

Of course, some directives are absolute and non-negotiable. But you can’t rely on this approach all the time when working with today’s skilled, talented professionals who thrive in an environment of autonomy.

Instead, the right company communication strategy is to invest in creating a receptive space where workers can put forth their concerns, share suggestions, and feel heard. And make sure those inputs are acted on. Not brushed under the carpet.

Listening to feedback doesn’t just help your employees feel valued. It also helps you clarify your message. You may think your communication is crystal clear but still miss some aspects critical to help others understand the information. Two-way communication can fill those gaps.

Facilitating two-way communication in your organization is easier than you think. For example, Blink is a corporate communication app that comes with a social-media-style news feed visible to all employees.

Anyone in the company can post an update, on which others can like and comment. This helps the most relevant stories rise to the top. Plus, the admins can choose to amplify selected updates even further. 

5. Bring consistency in your communication

All your communication, whether written or verbal, and whether internal or external, should have the essence of your company’s brand and workplace culture.

Plus, it should have a unique, consistent voice that reduces any chance of ambiguity and unifies your workforce. Such a voice also helps you communicate in the right spirit, not to mention avoid conflicts and misunderstandings.

But the more people participate and contribute to your organization’s communication, especially from different locations and time zones, the harder it gets to keep the voice consistent.

So what you need is a set of shared guidelines, formats, and best practices that everyone can refer to when creating content. And you can prepare the same in the form of a communication style guide.

Once you’ve clearly laid out your communication guidelines, make sure to train your communication department, as well as other contributors, on how to put the instructions into practice for subsequent messages.

6. Make use of visual aids

Different people have different learning styles. Some are comfortable reading pages after pages of text, some want to listen on the go, while others need something to view, like a video.

Regardless, almost everyone gets enticed by imagery. Presentations and infographics help people wrap their heads around the given information. So using colorful posters, charts, and graphs to distill complicated ideas is one of the best ways to make your message clear and memorable.

There are many ways to use visual aids for workplace communication. For example, if you find yourself repeating certain messages to your staff, or answering the same questions again and again, you can save time and effort with a visual aid to share the corresponding content.  

Is someone in your ear every 10 minutes with questions about holidays? Design a holiday calendar workers can check on their own. Bombarded with requests about printer passwords? Print them in large letters and stick them near the machine.

You don’t need to be a master designer to do this. Tools like Canva, Piktochart, and Venngage come with drag-and-drop functionality and hundreds of ready-made templates designed by professionals. So all you need to do is pick a template and replace its contents with yours. 

7. Train your staff on effective communication

We have spent a good chunk of our lives communicating with others, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that we’re good at it.

For example, many employees have such a logical, fact-based communication style that they often forget to take others’ emotions into account. Others often get carried away by feelings and miss key details. And the gaps in communication lead to conflict, ambiguity, and workplace politics.

So in any organization, effective communication should be proactively taught and encouraged. And it should be a vital part of the training programs you have in place for workers.

Great communication training helps teach your employees how to keep their emotions in check and present their ideas clearly and comprehensively.

8. Conduct more open sessions

Meetings are seen as a dull affair, especially when just one or two people are doing most of the talking. You’ve probably sat through many where you were just expected to attend and listen.

But that doesn’t mean all meetings are bad. A meeting is just a tool. And like any other tool, you can handle it effectively or poorly.

So every once in a while, you should conduct an open session with all the workers in your company or in specific departments. This meeting will have a set agenda, and every employee will be encouraged to speak up and talk about their work, their experiences, and any concerns or suggestions.

Scheduling such open sessions regularly will not just improve communication, but also help you get a pulse of different teams and your overall culture.

9. Leverage the right tools and technology

Remote work, dispersed teams, smartphones, and other advancements are shaping the new reality of work. But in many organizations, the communication systems and processes haven’t caught up to this change.

The good news is modern technology and employee engagement tools have made it easier than ever to streamline internal communication and include every employee in the process, from hiring to global HR services.

Frontline workers, for example, have largely been excluded from communication channels available to desk-based employees, such as email and instant messaging. With the rise of smartphones and mobile apps though, it is now possible to make them a crucial part of your ongoing communication.

With Blink, for example, workers can easily share documents, engage in live chat with one another, and resolve problems fast.

So it’s time for you to see if the technology you have in place is really enough to get the job done. If not, invest in the right tools to take your communication to the next level.

10. Cultivate the habit of active listening

No doubt, writing and talking clearly are crucial for proper communication, but managers and other employees should also know how to listen.

Poor listening undermines communication and defeats the purpose of effective collaboration. Without the right listening skills, messages are more likely to be misunderstood.

Now, you may think you listen, but good listening is more than identifying others’ words. As Stephen Covey says, “Most of us listen with the intent to respond, not to understand.”

So, cultivate a habit of listening among yourself and your employees. Encourage everyone to practice active listening methods. And teach your staff to reflect, summarize, and ask clarifying questions when listening to a customer or coworker.

When employees and customers feel heard and understood, they’re more likely to keep working with you and have a positive image of your brand.

How to improve organizational communication in the workplace

Follow these tips to help achieve effective communication in the workplace:

1. Use the right tools. Having the right tools to communicate, that everyone can access, and use is vital. Review your tech stack and make improvements where needed.
2. Get feedback. Employee surveys can help shed light on your current communication methods and where you can make improvements.
3. Use different communication formats. Images, emails, videos, the list goes on. Use different formats for the different types of communications you need to deliver.
4. Distribute through the right channels. What's the best way to deliver the message? Email, instant message, intranet, app notifcation? Make sure you pick the right channel.
5. Focus on employee engagement strategies. An engaged workforce is open to communication and sharing their voice.
6. Measure the outcomes. Keep a close eye on your metrics. How many people are reading your emails and communications? Is it enough or do you need to improve?

Wrapping up: effective organizational communication strategies

As you can see, good communication doesn’t happen by accident. You need to make sure that your messages successfully reach the intended audience, are interpreted clearly, and are understood empathetically.

It takes effort from both you and your staff. So the more confidently you apply the organizational communication strategies we have outlined in this guide, the more your team would also integrate them into their actions. So take time to develop and execute these concepts diligently to build a collaborative and efficient workplace.

And remember, using a communication solution like Blink can reduce your communication effort while increasing the penetration of your messages, even with a largely remote or dispersed workforce. Book a free demo today.